A little bird told me: A Soundwalk at the Botanic Gardens, Belfast

This soundwalk 'A little bird told me' features as the first part of Robert Coleman’s pre-viva presentation. The presentation will conclude with an evening concert at 7pm at SARC, Queen's University, Belfast.

This soundwalk in Belfast’s Botanic Gardens explores the human relationship to wildlife through sound and performance.

The Botanic Gardens is a carefully tended busy green space near the centre of Belfast where people meet their friends, eat their lunch or walk the dog. It is also home to a variety of wildlife most notably birds. Throughout his PhD research Robert has been recording and studying the soundscape, particularly the birds and their behaviour here as well as several related sites around Ireland. Combining contemporary ecoacoustic methods with traditional knowledge on biodiversity we explore the act of listening and how it can facilitate a deeper understanding of these nonhuman lives around us and crucially how our actions affect them today.

Booking is essential for all participants. As places are limited, please only reserve a ticket if you will be present for the event.

Meeting Point: SARC Foyer, Cloreen Park, Belfast BT95HN

Please bring headphones and a smartphone. Parts of this walk will feature audio hosted on the Echoes app which you will need to download. Full information and links will be sent to you in advance of the event. Technical assistance will be available on-site before the beginning of the walk.

Composer Robert Coleman’s current work draws from numerous fields such as soundscape studies, site-specific art, field recording, and community and participatory arts. He is currently a PhD student at the Sonic Arts Research Centre, Queen's University Belfast focusing on Ecological Sound Art where he is supervised by an interdisciplinary team from Sonic Arts and Biological Sciences.

He has been commissioned by Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival, Sound Scotland, Crash Ensemble and New Music Dublin, the National Concert Hall Dublin, Irish National Opera, the Irish Museum of Modern Art (IMMA), Tallaght Community Arts, violinist Larissa O’Grady and others.

Highly active in artistic direction he is a founding member and performer with Dublin based experimental music group Kirkos. In 2023 he founded the School of Wild Listening, a platform for the discussion and dissemination of ecological sound art. Its aim is to promote an understanding of the living world and the current challenges we face through open and accessible listening and creative sound events. 

As a performer with Kirkos he has explored experimental repertoire from Irish and international artists, performing at Sound Festival, Scotland, Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival, the Hugh Lane Gallery Sundays at Noon, the Douglas Hyde, Dublin Fringe, amongst others.

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